Partisan spats roil House homeland panel

Tension appears to be rising between Homeland Security Chairman Christopher Cox, R-Calif., and ranking member Jim Turner, D-Texas, over reports issued by the committee's Democratic members criticizing the Bush administration's homeland security efforts.

"Twice in the last few weeks -- most recently today -- the minority has issued 'reports' which represent neither the work product of our committee, nor the high standard of quality that has heretofore typified the work of both majority and minority," Cox wrote in a Thursday letter to Turner, calling the report "harshly political and partisan."

Cox's office released the letter after Turner issued a minority report titled "The Biodefense Failure: The National Smallpox Vaccination Program One Year Later."

In turn, Turner responded with a letter to Cox saying he "was disappointed to receive your letter of today criticizing the work of the Democratic members," and taking issue with Cox's characterization of the report. Saying he did not accept the criticism that the report is a "product of, or reflects, a partisan intent or purpose," Turner said the panel has an obligation to "provide oversight on issues of critical important to homeland security."

Thursday's exchange between the two lawmakers is the second time Cox has responded to a minority analysis. When Democratic members issued their first report Jan. 16 about the state of homeland security efforts, Cox responded with a news release "reminding" the minority that homeland security should not be politicized.

"The Democrats apparently couldn't wait to kick off the political season with cynical rhetoric designed to scare people about the security of our nation, and I find that appalling," said Cox, whose office later issued a revision -- "per the chairman's request" -- that deleted the statement above. Turner, during a conference call, denied Democrats were motivated by politics. "It's a legitimate exercise in congressional oversight," he said.

But with a presidential election around the corner, it is the season for partisanship, said Frank Cilluffo, associate vice president for homeland security at George Washington University. "It is campaign hunting season," he said, while cautioning that the bickering between the two lawmakers could adversely affect the panel's chances of becoming permanent -- an issue the 109th Congress will deal with when it organizes early next year. "Look at other committees. Process matters," he said.

A Turner aide said the reports demonstrate the value of having a permanent committee to do vigorous oversight and that the minority has not done anything out of the ordinary by conducting the investigations.

However, it appears Cox is concerned about the committee's permanence as well, saying the latest Democratic report's "breathlessness, in place of analysis and rigor, weakens the legitimacy and reputation of our committee." He went on to tell Turner that a "better path for our committee" is to follow the example of other committees and work "collegially."

Turner, in his letter to Cox, said he expected their previous "good working relationship" to "no doubt continue."